Chocolate Pudding

1. For a deeper flavour and to make the fruit fuller, soak your dried fruit and dates in the alcohol 24 hours in advance - it really makes a difference.
2. Prepare the pudding bowl by greasing it with some soft butter.
3. Put the butter and sugar in a suitable mixing bowl and beat until light and fluffy. Beat in the eggs one by one. Add the fruit soaked in brandy and stir in the remaining ingredients, except the flour. Fold in the flour lightly, but do not over mix.
4. Spoon into the pudding bowl and level the top. Tear off a piece of baking paper to cover the bowl and a slightly larger piece of foil that covers the baking paper and can be clamped around the edge of the bowl to hold it in place.
5. Put 2 cups of water in the inner pan and place the set-up in it. Tear 2 strips of foil, each about 60 cm long, and fold them in half lengthwise, leaving 2 thinner strips. Lay these diagonally across the bottom of the trivet, so that the foil runs up the sides of the pan. In this way you can safely remove the hot pudding later.
6. Carefully place the pudding on the trivet and gather the foil strips around the top of the bowl.
7. Close the lid and start a manual high pressure cooking program with a cooking time of 50 minutes. Afterwards, let the pressure cooker cool down.
8. Remove the lid and carefully take out the pudding.
9. Place the pudding on a cooling rack and remove the foil and the baking paper lid.
10. When the pudding is completely cooled, cover it with fresh baking paper and foil and store in a cool, dry place until you need it.

To reheat the pudding - repeat the above programme to reheat with a cooking time of 30 minutes; the pudding can be kept warm with the warming function until you are ready to serve it.
Tip: Flambé with warm brandy and serve with a jug of flavoured cream or Brandy sauce.